Where does freedom come from?

by Sally Gilbert
Legal Columnist

Does freedom come from within us? Does it come from familiarity with a community and its sympathizers’ support to make others see the light? Or does freedom come only with outside protections?

I would like to think that “freedom” comes from within, that we can remain free despite external circumstances. I also know that freedom for minorities comes from organic changes in our society which take place over time. As minority members gradually integrate into the mainstream, improvements in civil and human rights usually follow. Allies’ vocal support and the examples they set help change the hearts and minds of the misguided.

Although I agree with the sentiments that we find freedom and peace within ourselves and that time will ultimately cure most prejudice, reality tells me that outer constraints do matter. Reality also tells me that we can’t become complacent with injustice. We have to do all of the above: try to always take the high road, seek compromise where possible, and trust in humanity, but also take action to change discriminatory laws.

Remember the early scene from the movie Selma? Oprah Winfrey’s character has the patience of a saint as she spars with the county voter registration official. He asks her a series of questions to test her civic knowledge. She successfully recites the preamble to the U.S. Constitution. She knows there are 67 county judges in Alabama. “Name them,” the petty official tells her in triumph and Annie Lee Cooper has to walk away.

Her attitude did not get her the right to vote. It was Martin Luther King’s peaceful protests, especially after whites started marching, and his persistent lobbying of President Lyndon Johnson that ultimately achieved electoral freedoms with passage of the federal Voting Rights Act. Very often, attitudes of bigotry and prejudice can only be “adjusted” by changes in the law. Legal reforms have been the touchstones for liberty, justice and freedom for various groups over the course of our history.

As this issue goes to press, we are optimistically awaiting the Supreme Court decision on gay marriage. Obviously, whether or not the LGBT community is victorious on this most important front, there are other wrongs that need to be righted. Abuse in the workplace, student bullying, and housing discrimination against transgender persons come to mind.

Attitudes of patience and compromise aren’t enough. The community needs federal, state and municipal anti-discrimination laws. Sometimes our culture has to be moved along by laws and judicial decisions that protect human and civil rights. Victory in school desegregation, voting rights, and fair labor practices took legislative and judicial intervention.

Our Declaration of Independence states that we have inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Let’s help speed up the realization of these rights for everyone. The odds may be against us, but persistence will win out. Let’s work to change our laws to protect all members of our workforce, transgender people seeking housing, bullied students and others simply seeking equal treatment.

The Gayly – July 12, 2015 @ 5:30am.